How Paquetá Can Solve The Creative Gulf

News broke earlier today of City talisman Kevin De Bruyne’s hamstring injury. According to reports, the Belgian playmaker is facing an extended period out of action. That has left many City fans concerned with how his absence affects our squad. In the Community Shield against Arsenal, a match where neither Phil Foden or Kevin de Bruyne started, the Blues looked slow and lethargic when creating chances, leaving Erling Haaland an isolated figure. And now, with De Bruyne set to be out for a while, it’d seem out of the question that City won’t bring in at least one new face to help continue the creativity in the Belgian’s absence.

Enter Lucas Paquetá, a talented Brazilian midfielder who currently applies his trade at West Ham United. According to numerous reputable sources, such as highly-regarded transfer specialists Fabrizio Romano and David Ornstein, City are currently working on a deal to bring the 25-year old to the Etihad. But, for a fee that has reportedly been touted at over £80 million, is Paquetá worth his value? For my Man City International debut, this article analyses just how West Ham’s number 10 will help City solve their current teething issues with creating chances.

Set Pieces

One way in which Paquetá can make an instant impact, without needing any time to bed in, is his involvement with set pieces. With Riyad Mahrez’s move to Al-Ahli leaving City in need of a new left footed set piece taker, we could see Paquetá step up to the plate to deliver. He took some direct free kicks at West Ham, but was behind Aaron Cresswell, Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma in the pecking order, with the same applying for corners and indirect free-kicks. At City, he’ll have less competition on set pieces, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see Paquetá given the nod in that regard more often than when he was at the Hammers.

Another way in which he’ll be vital to City’s success with set pieces is by winning them. Paquetá is a typical Brazilian footballer; he has very fast feet, and loves to pull tricks out of the bag, meaning he is prone to the odd clattering from opposition players. The fact is, any skillful player is a foul magnet and Paquetá is no exception. He was fouled 47 times last season and drew 3 fouls in West Ham’s opening day 1-1 draw away to Bournemouth, more than any of his teammates. I’d expect that number to be higher if he joins City, a team who have a much higher average possession, therefore meaning there is more opportunity to be fouled.

Like our #10 Jack Grealish, Paquetá can help the team create consistent set piece chances both directly and indirectly, which can be rightfully considered as an underrated and under-appreciated blend of skills in football.

Open play

Paquetá isn’t just going to be a system player if he makes the move from London. He is an extremely talented individual who can contribute immensely to City’s creative output. The Brazilian completed 80% of his passes last season, an excellent amount for a creative midfielder, considering De Bruyne’s passing accuracy stands at 81%. It indicates that whilst not every pass is perfect, Paquetá is willing to take calculated risks on the ball, looking to create, rather than solely focusing on retention. It’s worth noting that while Guardiola limits such low passing accuracy numbers to one or two players, he prioritises keeping possession and breaking teams down slowly. However, De Bruyne’s absence from the side may open the proverbial door to give Paquetá the freedom required to express his creative capabilities. The Brazilian loves a through ball, playing 15 of them last season in the Premier League while playing for a conservative West Ham side. That may not sound like a lot but De Bruyne, who plays for a much superior team as the main creator, completed just 28 through balls last season in the Premier League.

The City player who will likely benefit most from Paquetá’s through balls is none other than Erling Haaland. The Norwegian loves nothing more than to explode into space behind a backline and Paquetá has the ability and intelligence to compliment his talents superbly. I doubt Paquetá will be a controller, like Kovacic, Bernardo or Grealish. I expect him to be a conductor of chaos, like Foden, De Bruyne or Alvarez, but he already possesses the skills to develop into a well-rounded player and should only improve after a year of working with Guardiola, making him versatile enough to flick between the two playing styles.

Conclusion

City appear to be approaching a difficult time - they’re facing a spell of up to 4 months without their key source of creativity. They need to act in the transfer window, effectively, as well as promptly. There is a current issue with creativity, especially if Foden doesn’t play, but Paquetá’s arrival will serve as a massive reinforcement in that department. If nothing else, he’ll provide top quality depth, something that has been somewhat of a recent weakness of City’s. Paquetá is definitely good enough to start for City when we need him to but he’ll also be an excellent impact substitution to inject creativity when it is inevitably needed.

It’ll be difficult to negotiate with West Ham after losing Declan Rice, but I expect Paquetá to be wearing sky blue by the end of the transfer window. Not just that, but I expect him to play a huge role in how City adapt to life without De Bruyne, and to take us forward when the Belgian returns.

Written By: Will Russell

Edited by: Sheikh